Crime • When store clerk refuses to open register, men take it with them.

By Michael Mcfall The Salt Lake Tribune

Published December 1, 2012 11:30 am

This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2012, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Police are looking for two men who robbed a grocery store at gunpoint and made off with the cash register in a getaway taxicab.

The men entered the store at 7400 S. 1624 West about 8:10 p.m. Friday. One man approached the cashier, brandished a handgun and ordered her to open the register, said West Jordan police Sgt. Rich Bell. She refused.

"So the suspects took the cash register and ran out of the store ... [then] fled the scene in a taxi cab they arrived in," Bell said.

They had the driver drop them off near 3500 S. Bangerter Highway in West Valley City, where police later found the abandoned register. The driver told police the men struggled to open it during the getaway, and it was not immediately clear whether they had managed to open it and get to the undisclosed amount of money inside, Bell said.

As far as the police are concerned, the cab driver was an innocent bystander who felt threatened and cooperated out of fear for his safety.

No one, including the driver, was hurt during the robbery.

Investigators feel they have leads on the men, whom Bell described as Hispanic  one about 20 to 22 years old with an eagle tattoo under his left eye, and a man about 19 to 20 years old.

Anyone with information can contact the West Jordan Police Department at 801-256-2000.